8 Stock Taking Steps That Can't Be Missed
Table of Contents
Definition of Stock Taking & Purpose of Stock Taking
Stock taking is an activity conducted to support the success of a business. This activity aims to count the actual inventory. Besides, stocktaking is also carried out to count goods or assets related to the company’s operational activities.
Reconciling the number of stocks between the financial records with the actual stocks is important to control the operational costs and help the company in determining stock purchases appropriately. Besides, it has other benefits such as:
- Knowing the actual stock quantity
- Preventing company losses
- Internal control
- Managing goods mutation
Usually, companies carry out stock taking at the end of each year after the financial year has ended. However, some companies do this activity every 3-4 months or at the beginning of each month to reduce the risk of stock differences. Then, what should you do to have effective stock taking activities? Check out the explanation below!
Stock Taking Steps
Set The Perfect Time
Set a schedule so that your employees can prepare themselves and all the necessary prerequisites. Also, set aside the time for calculating financial reports/bookkeeping because those activities are connected.
Prepare The Updated Data
As in the initial goal, stock taking activities are carried out to match existing data in the system with the actual condition. It’s important to prepare the latest inventory data with the number of products sold. You can recheck the number of goods that have been out of the warehouse. Either because it was sold, or because it was damaged.
Define The Areas
Dividing the storage area in the warehouse is an important step in stock taking activities. It’s also a good idea to map out the storage area, so the staff can find the location easily. Mark which areas have been counted to prevent repeat counting in the same area.
Determine The Items You Want to Count
Keep in mind that not all items have to be counted at the same time. Determine what types of goods are the priority.
Prepare Notes/Barcode Scan
Prepare the necessary tools, such as notebooks, barcode scanners, and others. With these tools, calculations and records will become easier and more accurate. The stock taking feature in the Advotics Warehouse Management System minimizes all data discrepancies by using a scanner connected with the system, so there is no need to transfer report data manually in excel.
Stop Goods Movement Temporarily
To avoid calculation errors, pause the goods movement while stock taking is in progress to minimize discrepancies in the calculations. Notify suppliers and customers that stock taking activity is in progress.
Choose Competent Employees
This item-matching activity is an activity that requires high precision and concentration. Therefore, choose employees who are thorough and have integrity with good numeracy skills.
Form Two Different Teams
To make work more effective and accurate, form two teams while doing stock data matching activities. The first team, called the field team, has to calculate items in the warehouse, while the second one (the admin) has to enter data into the system. This stock taking step will be easier to complete with the help of Advotics Warehouse Management System because the admin team can directly monitor real-time stock inventory from one dashboard.
